Mycophagy and feeding on other native land snails by the black snail Macrocyclis peruvianus (Gastropoda, Macrocyclidae)

Abstract

AbstractLand snails are among Chile's least studied invertebrates. Their natural history and ecology are poorly studied, even when it comes to striking species such as the black snail Macrocyclis peruvianus. This large and easily recognizable species inhabits the forest floor of southern Chile; however, we do not know its eating habits. In this natural history note, we describe the first records of mycophagy in M. peruvianus in native Chilean forests. The records were obtained thanks to citizen science (iNaturalist, Instagram and Facebook), which provided a complete data set with habitat remarks. We registered 21 records of mycophagy, from which we identified three fungus species (Marasmiellus alliodorus, Aleurodiscus vitellinus and Grifola gargal) and five genera (Armillaria, Boletus, Mycena, Pholiota and Ramaria). Of the consumed fungi, 58.82% grew in coarse woody debris and 64.70% belong to the order Agaricales, followed by Boletales, Gomphales, Russulales and Polyporales. In addition, we described the first record of M. peruvianus feeding on the native land snail Plectostylus peruvianus. Coarse woody debris could be a key element for black snails because their frequent food – the Agaricales fungi species – grows on them. Finally, M. peruvianus feeding on other native land snails could be rare in the wild because they co‐occur in the same distribution but in different microhabitats.